SEASON TWENTY-ONE AT FORTY: 'THE AWAKENING'

Sunday, March 17, 2024

SEASON TWENTY-ONE AT FORTY: 'THE AWAKENING'

The evil Malus is reactivated in the much-liked two-parter, The Awakening.

The TARDIS has brought the Doctor, Tegan and Turlough to the picture postcard English village of Little Hodcombe. Tegan has come to visit her grandfather - well known local historian Andrew Verney - but he seems to be missing. The residents of Little Hodcombe, led by the obsessive Sir George Hutchison, are playing a vicious war game - an exact recreation of a battle of the English Civil War fought there in 1643.

As each of the TARDIS crew members witness a terrifying apparition from the past, the Doctor realises that he faces a far greater menace than the unstable Huthcison. An ancient and alien force for evil is at work -one which will glory in the slaughter of them all...

Official BBC VHS video release synopsis - 1997.

Never outstaying its welcome at two-episodes (though its a shame that the Davison era was never capable of having three-parters of the kind later belonging to Sylvester McCoy - a story like this deserved to be able to breathe a bit easier), The Awakening gets the Fifth Doctor's final season off proper to a satisfying and atmospheric start after the mixed fortunes of Warriors of the Deep. Eric Pringle's lively tale (added to heavily by script editor Eric Saward) has a lovely aura of Sapphire and Steel about it (a show which scared the life out of me as a kid with its time incursion horror aspects), mixed with the kind of scenic charm and mystery building that the original sixties The Avengers series did so well, the Hampshire and Dorset locations used here to bring Little Hodcombe to life looking gorgeous.

Classic behind the scenes image of Visual Effects Designer Tony Harding with the two aspects of the Malus.

The cast of The Awakening is a highly likeable assembly too, most notably, ex-The Liver Birds star Polly James as school teacher hero Jane Hampden and Keith Jayne as the time traversing youngster Will Chandler. Main guest star Dennis Lill chews up the scenery in the best ways possible as the possessed magister Sir George, now under the powerful influence of the Malus creature, whose visual appearance, emergent from one of the impressive sets created by series stalwart designer Barry Newbery, is one of the best in the series classic history, as well as being a true credit to the work of visual effects designer Tony Harding, the original father/creator of K-9. Michael Owen Morris proves a fine director of the building war games, and it's a shame he was never available to do more of the series. All-in-all, The Awakening, despite a rushed conclusion, was the kind of little gem of a story that general audience viewers liked, and it delivered the dramatic sci-fi goods, albeit over two short-but-sweet transmission days.

Director Michael Owen Morris makes a fine one-time contribution to the series, alongside Davison, Fielding and Strickson during location filming.

The Awakening ★★★★★ | Radio Times

Polly James impresses as the troubled local school teacher, Jane Hampden.

The Malus emergent from its once dormant stage.

The Doctor discovers strange things afoot in the village of Little Hodcombe.

Peter Davison, Polly James and Keith Jayne (as the timeline traversing 17th Century survivor Will Chandler) within the impressive church set, with the Malus face nearby.

Sir George Hutchison (Dennis Lill) is under the corrupted spell of the Malus.

Turlough captured... again!

And the Doctor now captured on the heath.

Brought to the manic Sir George.

The Doctor and Will Chandler sabotage the last stage of the war games, much to Sir George's dismay and anger.

Turlough and Tegan's captured now freed grandfather, Andrew Verney (Frederick Hall), take on some of Sir George's henchman in the church crypt,

Amidst the chaos, Tegan is reunited with her Grandfather.

With the TARDIS having turned the Malus's energy on itself (where it will ultimately destroy itself and the church), our heroes confront the insane puppet Sir George one last time where he is defeated.